Now that is a nightmare inducing thought. :)

Hi La Peregrina,
I noticed that Troy Donahue wore that signature red jacket too. Since both Rebel Without A Cause & Susan Slade were made at Warner Brothers, I’m betting that the coincidence was anything but accidental, though Troy’s “rebel” seems more morose about his personal circumstances, (Dad’s fall from grace, demise, and his own labors at that swanky looking stable), than socially and politically revolutionary as Dean appeared in Nicholas Ray’s film. However, given the vicissitudes of Hollywood life, James Dean–if he’d lived–might have found himself accepting work in his own share of Susan Slade‘s too, I suppose. Hard to imagine, though, isn’t it?

What I like about the overproduced studio films, like this one, from the early sixties is how fake they seem with their fifties sensibilities. Susan Slade was was made after the emergence of beatnik culture, the same year as the Freedom Rides, a year before Bob Dylan’s first record, two years before the publication of “The Feminine Mystique,” and three years before the rise of hippie culture. We now know these things would change films greatly so watching movies from that time period, for me, is like watching dinosaurs meander across the earth with no idea that a very large meteor is about to crash into their backyard and end life as they know it.

Speaking of fake, one thing I noticed in Susan Slade is Troy Donahue’s red jacket. It is the same kind of jacket that James Dean wore in Rebel Without A Cause. Are we supposed to think his character, Hoyt Becker, is as much as a rebel as Jim Stark was in Dean’s movie? Yeah, right.

Oh, and speaking of Lloyd Nolan, I agree with you 100%. There is something “solid” about the man that I’ve always liked.

Forgive my error Miss Goddess and Moira.

Cinemaven

is where it’s at, ey??? This is where all the geniuses go; pictures and everything. Your essay on “Susan Slade” is wonderful. I’d better stay the little fish in the big pond over on the TCM Message Boards. Wonderful wonderful read. I haven’t finished. I think I’ll take your essay to breakfast with me and savor it.

Thank you!

Yet another wonderful post about sacred, profane and plain old addictive movies. The first time I saw “Susan Slade” it aired as the 12:OOAM feature on a local station. Didn’t finish watching it until 3:00AM (blasted commercials!) and I had an 8:00AM class later that morning. Later that evening, I mentioned to my mom I had watched it and she let out a sigh saturated with nostalgia and envy. She too loved the fairy tale house, not to mention certain aspects of Connie Stevens’ wardrobe. We both were felled by that red silk shirtwaist with the cashmere (Mom says camel hair) coat featuring a matching red silk lining. And the matching chiffon scarf! And don’t get me started on the San Francisco/Dr Am I Pregnant? green tweed suit. However, I do agree that some of the clothing must have been a trial for poor Connie.

Quite off the subject, the December 22 issue of the New Yorker has an article about the wildly popular “keitai shosetsu” — cell phone novels, which are the forte of teen girls and young women throughout Japan.The content of these novels are almost all exclusively focused upon a girl’s self-sacrifice, masochism and eventual doom,naturally for the love of that certain boy. The plot of “Susan Slade” could be almost identical to these novels except the ending of this film has our heroine experiencing nothing less than a feminist breakthrough. What’s more her mother, her suitor and even Natalie Schafer’s character support Susan’s stance. To me, and maybe to others, this might be another pleasure of the movie.

Thanks for letting me ramble. You are all too kind.

Hi Joe,
Thanks for sharing your memories of seeing Connie and Troy in the flesh on such a festive–if overcrowded–occasion. Wasn’t the film a little, uh, adult, for your niece at that time?? I appreciate your input, you gadabout New Yorker!

Gee, Laura,
I’m delighted that you’re enjoying Dorothy McGuire‘s movies recently, though I suspect that you may find her role in Susan Slade somewhat underwritten–not to mention morally confusing, at best.

Hmm, Patricia,
I really like your idea of showing the Chinese restaurant scene in Somewhere in the Night (1946) to acting students and asking them to analyze which of the actors present makes it work. Correct answer: Mr. Nolan, hands down! I’m hardly the first person to point out the “wholesale juvenilization” in our popular culture, though the use of that term probably qualifies me for a new copy of Will Strunk & E.B. White’s “Elements of Style” or at least a spot in the curmudgeon’s Valhalla.

Hi Al,
Never came across anyone, anywhere who did not find themselves a little bit susceptible to the bubbly warmth of Connie Stevens. Her general appearance of blond, innocent sexiness probably contributed a bit to the censors’ overlooking her addressing James Garner as “Lover” on Maverick. This same ingenuousness, even among the sometimes tawdry suds of Susan Slade, is probably one of the reasons a viewer feels a pang or two for her plight. Not to mention the empathy I felt for her after getting an eyeful of some of the wardrobe worn in the movie, such as the half “pleather”, half-knitted sweater she flounced around in during a couple of scenes.

How aptly put, Suzi!
I think you’ve hit on several of the reasons that “women’s films” and nowadays “chick flicks” continue to thrive. “[T]he acting style, exaggerated emotions, and contrived plots” still have a cathartic power for many viewers, (and not just female ones, I’ve found). It certainly didn’t hurt that such seasoned pros among the cast and the crew were on hand to lend some solid structure to this sometimes unwieldy story. And Connie‘s character name of “Cricket Blake” on Hawaiian Eye fit her personality perfectly!

Oh, Bronxgirl,
You just pipe right up anytime. I’ll be glad to try to write about any film related fancy that strikes you, even if it seems that there are far more movies than there is time.

I don’t mean to carp with your marvelous scholarship (and it’s just a typo), but Connie’s mountain-climbing romance is played by Grant Williams (not Mitchell), who was indeed the quite amazingly moving star of “The Incredible Shrinking Man”, a favorite of so many of us classic science fiction fans.

I am a sucker for 1950s unwanted pregnancy movies; I need to watch this one sometime!